Dark Stranger, Forbidden Love
by Crystal heart 255
Summary: When Katara is caught by an evil Fire nation Admiral and is about to be hurt, what will she do when her masked saviour shows up only to take her as his own prisoner? Will she run away and try to escape? Or will she try to unlock the mystery of the blue spirit?
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1: Fire And Fear

Katana watched in despair as the beautiful valley she and her friends had chosen for their campsite three nights before, was engulfed in angry flame... Much to her friends dislike, Katara made her brother, Sokka, her friend, Toph Beifong, and the avatar, Aang flee from the valley the minute the first fire blast struck... Hopefully they were long gone by now... Katara felt a chill crawl up her spine as a dark male chuckle sounded behind her and only one person came to mind...

" Only you could be so horrible Zuko!" Katara screamed angrily and turned to face her enemy...

Katara stopped, frozen in fear... The man before her was not Prince Zuko, but an older, more fierce looking man... His hair was a cross between brown and steely grey and he wore a terrifying smile on his face...

"Ah... What a beautiful young water sprite... Now I see why Prince Zuko didn't want to capture the Avatar right away..." The man said smoothly, " I'd rather see a rare flower like you then go home any day..."

" Who are you?!" Katara demanded in a frightened voice.

"Oh my... I've been very rude, haven't I? Forgive me dear, I am Admiral Zhou... I need to find the avatar..." Admiral Zhou stated in a silken tone...

" I would never help you find him!" Katara screamed angrily.

" You have no choice... Your my prisoner now..." Admiral Zhou stated smugly...

Suddenly, an oily snake like grin appeared on his lips as visions of what he wanted to do with the water bender began invading his mind... Katara instantly began backing away as the fire Nation Admiral closed the distance between them...

"What's wrong with you?! Why are you looking at me that way?!" Katara whispered frantically...

Not too far away, Prince Zuko was trying to find traces of the avatars whereabouts, his uncle Iroh at his side as always... As he searched for the avatar, Prince Zuko soon found himself thinking of the beautiful young water bender that also traveled with the avatar. He often found himself cruelly taunting her each time he find himself battling her alone. Calling her a worthless water tribe peasant was one taunt he used quite often... But the most recent battle he had with her, something strange happened... As he began taunting her once again and calling her name's, she suddenly burst into tears! Prince Zuko was startled, he enjoyed picking on her, more teasing and playing then really truly meaning it... Never having dealt with a girl in tears before, he silently walked over to her and shocked her to her very soul when she felt a pair of strong powerful arms lift her off the ground... Against his better judgement, Prince Zuko carried her to where he and his uncle had set up camp and gently set her down on a very large soft cushion... Katara had never seen Prince Zuko act like this before, but said nothing. She watched in surprise as he then filled a plate full of spiced meat, fruits and cheeses of various kinds and gently offered it to her without a word. An adorable pink blush heated her cheeks, making her looking even more exotic and beautiful... Forgetting he was the enemy, Katara reached out and took the plate from Zuko slowly as if not to break the strange spell that seemed to be cast over them. Iroh noticed this and watched the two with a mischievous glint in his eye. Zuko blushed just the slightest bit as Katara smiled shyly at him... She really shocked him when she spoke up finally...

" Why did you bring me to your campsite Prince Zuko?" Katara asked innocently.

" I guess I was... Um... Concerned? When you started crying... I figured it's probably been a while since you and your group have been able to get any supplies..." Prince Zuko said nervously, " I figured you might feel better if you ate something..."

Katara had never thought Zuko could be so sweet... Here she was, supposedly his enemy, yet he carried her to his camp and fed her?! It was the sweetest thing any one had ever done for her...

"Thank you... Our supplies have gone down quite a bit... I've been in charge of the rations..." Katara said looking away.

Hearing this, Prince Zuko was suddenly over taken by anger and grabbed Katara without thinking.

"Have you not been eating too?!" Prince Zuko yelled furiously.

"It was more important for my brother and my friends to get what they needed!" Katara said, her voice shaking at the Prince's strange behaviour.

Perhaps the Prince's feelings towards her were not what she thought after all... His rage settling down a bit, Prince Zuko once again acted strangely... Slowly he sat down behind the girl and gently encircled his arms around her... Leaning towards her, he quietly whispered in her ear words that had the power to take her breath away and stop her heart...

"Forgive me... I don't even know your name... I don't have any right telling you what to do... I just... Couldn't bare the thought of someone so beautiful becoming Ill, whether for good reasons or not..." Prince Zuko said, locking eyes with her...

Suddenly, Zuko was brought out of his memories by an ear piercing scream, the voice of the girl he began to know all too well... Without a word to his uncle, Prince Zuko quickly grabbed his mask and disguise and leapt up into a tree to change... Once he was dressed all in black and the grotesque blue and white demon mask was in place, he raced toward the sound of feminine screams until he broke through the trees, he saw the most ghastly thing he had ever seen... It was the water tribe girl, the brilliant blue of her mother's necklace standing out against her beautiful dark skin... Her blue eyes bloodshot from crying, angry bloody welts all over her naked body, bruises marring her delicate flesh... What was worse, was realizing who the man was who had done such cruelty to her... Admiral Zhou... He was completely naked as well, but covered in deep bloody scratches from where she'd obviously tried to fight him off...

Katara looked at her saviour as he pulled out a pair of broadswords... Then the battle began...


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2: The Battle

Admiral Zhou caughed up some blood before pulling the swords from his body and standing up to face his Masked assailant, his face a mask of anger and pain...

"How dare you interrupt my fun! I will kill you!" Admiral Zhou screamed angrily.

Admiral Zhou ran at the Masked man and used fire bending to try and get an advantage over him but it did not work. Using his broadswords as a fan, the Masked man easily diminished the flames and stabbed Admiral Zhou in the neck... Admiral Zhou looked at the masked man in fear as realization finally sank in...

"Dear God... I know who you are..." Admiral Zhou said in fear, "Your the blue Spirit! Your brutality says it all!"

Admiral Zhou ran to where his clothes were and dressed himself as fast as he could with all the injuries he'd already sustained and turned once again to face the blue spirit... The blue spirit came at Admiral Zhou as fast as lighting, slashing and cutting at his flesh with inhuman speed... By the time the blue spirit decided to stop and take a small break, Admiral Zhou was bleeding heavily and on his last leg when the blue spirit raised his swords menacingly...

"No!" A female voice cried out, "Please... He did not succeed in hurting me that way!"

Katara ran in front of the Admiral that had attempted to rape her, her skin bare and caked with dried blood from her wounds and flung herself at the blue spirit... He caught her in his powerful arms and held her carefully as he looked her body over. A deep rosy pink blush spread across her cheeks as he boldly but gently opened her legs to make sure what she spoke of was true. Thankfully, there was no sign of blood or forced trauma so the blue spirit sighed in relief... Setting the girl down behind him, the blue spirit grabbed Admiral Zhou around the neck and hurled him into a tree, giving him a nasty concussion and rendering the evil man unconscious... The blue spirit then turned to the young water tribe girl and crossed his arms over his chest...

"Look... It's not what you think... I'm very grateful to you for saving me... I just... With the war and all..." Katara said blushing, " I couldn't bare to see anyone else killed... Even a monster like him..."

Katara squeezed her eyes shut as the blue spirit slowly walked towards her...

'What will he do with me?!' Katara thought to herself frantically, ' Will he finish where the Admiral left off?!'

Katara sat there, frozen in fear, waiting to hear the blue spirit rid himself of his clothes... But nothing happened... Katara still kept her eyes shut though... That is... Until she felt a warm palm gently stroke her cheek... Katara gasped and looked up at the masked man and turned her head much like a cute polar bear dog puppy would at something that grabbed it's curiosity, the masked Prince Zuko couldn't help but find her curiosity adorable... It truly took all of his will power not to disrobe and make her his, though he truly wanted to... Even if he was gentle with her, it still wouldn't be right... But he wanted her so badly... Looking at her fearful expression, he slowly motioned for her to stay put until he returned. Too afraid to move, Katara obediently stayed put until the blue spirit returned with a long silk sheet...

"What's that for?" Katara asked puzzled.

The blue spirit did not answer... Instead, he used his sword to cut a thick strip of fabric from the sheet. Then he carefully cut two more. He then threw two long strips to Katara.

"I don't understand." Katara said, " What do you want me to do with these?"

Without a word, the blue spirit walked up to her and carefully wrapped his arms around her, causing her already blushing countainance to blush an even deeper shade of pink... With one arm still wrapped around her waist, the blue spirit bent down and retrieved one of the strips of silk... Then, he bold lifted her breasts with one hand and began winding the fabric around them... Katara was too speechless to say anything against it, so she just stood there blushing as he continued his task. Every so often, his hand would gently brush her breast, causing her to gasp a little each time this happened. When he was finished, he tied her new breast binding in place and bent to pick up the other strip of silk...

'Wait a minute!' Katara thought to herself frantically, ' If that was for a new breast binding!'

Katara didn't get to finish her thought, for this time, she felt warm flesh, not a glove, gently rubbing between her legs... Katara gasped as the blue spirit gently fondled her most secret place for quite some time before he began winding the other strip of silk between her thighs... By the time he finished with her under garments, she was pretty much like jelly... The blue spirit then gently picked her up and carried her to a very soft patch of velvet moss and laid her down to rest while he worked on making her a dress out of the remaining part of the sheet... He spreaded the sheet out on the ground rich with grass and set to work. As a boy he'd often watched his mother work wonders with different types of fabric, cut it and tying it to create beautiful elegant dresses... In this sort of situation, he was happy that he'd paid attention... He measured the fabric to just over half way and carefully cut a diamond shape for the neck, then using some thread and a fine metal needle, elegantly sowed the neck so that it would not be ragged. The sheet was across between silver and gold, so in truth, he chose it to compliment her eyes... With the sheet still so wide and the girl having such a slender frame, the blue spirit decided to cut the fabric on each side, making several long strips hanging off of it... Once he was satisfied that both sides had the same amount of matching strips, the blue spirit set to work tying up the sides... He left the dress where it would fit rather loosely so that she could keep wearing it as she got older. Should she so choose... Last but not least, the blue spirit tool the longest strip and carefully wove it into a thick belt so she could ty the dress fashionably... When he finished, it had taken him a good hour and a half to finish... Taking the dress and the belt, the blue spirit went over to Katara and gently touched her cheek... The girl must have been exhausted, because she was sound asleep... The blue spirit looked over at the Admiral's broken body with disgust... Perhaps the beast was dead since he hadn't moved... Served him right...


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3: Katara's Masked Captor

Inspecting the dress one final time, the blue spirit fixed the holes for her arms and gently moved the girl into a sitting position, then carefully slid the dress over her head... Once that was accomplished, the blue spirit moved her so the dress elegantly draped over her body and tied the belt in place... Unable to resist how soft and silky her hair looked, he gently took down her hair and combed his fingers through it... What would she do if she new his true identity? Would she care about him? The Blue Spirit continued to watch over her for three days, wishing that she would awaken, but not daring to deprive her of the peaceful rest she so desperately needed... On the third day, about mid afternoon, he decided to gently rouse the sleeping beauty with a gentle pat on her cheek...

Katara slowly opened her eyes, looked up at the demon mask in front of her... And screamed... The Blue Spirit quickly raised his hands to show her that he meant her no harm stood up to give her a graceful bow...

"Um... Who are you? " Katara asked nervously...

The masked man got closer to her and bowed in respect before gently taking her hand in his...

" I remember now... " Katara said smiling, " Your the Blue Spirit! That admiral was very scared of you... You saved my life... "

The Blue Spirit suddenly got up quickly and left her, knowing that no one was around and she would be safe from any men seeking to harm her... Katara sat there by herself on the soft moss bed the Blue Spirit had laid her on and looked around frantically in confusion, trying to figure out where her Savior went to...

Meanwhile, the Blue Spirit quickly got some distance between him and the girl, before he took his mask and outfit off to reveal his princely robes... Prince Zuko stood at the clearing just before his and his uncles campsite, pondering what to do with his captive beauty...

"Uncle would know what to do... " Prince Zuko said to himself as he walked forward...

When he got to his campsite, his Uncle and soldiers were seated around the fire talking and laughing as Uncle made gensang tea and passed out plates of spiced meat and cheese...

" Well hello your highness!" General Tonor said happily, " We were worried when you didn't come back! It's been three full days!"

" I apologize for worrying you all... I have a new prisoner and I can't let her know my true identity just yet... " Prince Zuko said smiling.

There was suddenly quite a ruckus from the men, all of which began whistling and cat calling they're Prince and causing him to blush crimson...

" Enough already!" Prince Zuko shouted, " It's not like that!"

Uncle Iroh laughed wholeheartedly and gently hugged his nephew, his eyes shining with mischief...

" The men are just happy to see you again. Prince Zuko... They tease because they care... " Uncle Iroh said grinning...

Prince Zuko smiled.

Meanwhile, Katara was getting scared. After her ordeal with the admiral, she didn't wish to be alone... Honestly, she wasn't even sure she wanted to go back to Aang and the others... They would not be able to protect her the way the Blue Spirit had...

"I... I don't want to be alone!" Katara cried as tears began streaming down her cheeks... " Blue Spirit! Please come back!"

Suddenly, Katara heard voices in the distance! Without a second thought, Katara raced towards the voices, hoping that the Blue Spirit would be there...

Back at camp, Prince Zuko sat and listened as the men told stories of what happened when he was gone when suddenly, he heard the voice of a frightened woman ring out in the distance...

" I... I don't want to be alone! Blue Spirit! Where are you?! " The voice cried.

"who is that?!" General Tonor asked in shock.

The soldiers all looked at Prince Zuko questioningly as he cursed and jumped up into a tree without a word... A few moments later, Katara burst into the campsite, her tears still streaking down her cheeks...

" What troubles you my dear?" Iroh asked worriedly as he slowly approached her...

" I need the Blue Spirit... I need to know where he is!" Katara cried frantically, " Is... Is he here?!"

" Has he hurt you?!" General Tonor asked worriedly.

"No! He saved my life! A hateful general captured me and he tried to... Tried too... I tried to fight him off... But he was too strong and I... I was so afraid... If the the Blue Spirit hadn't come to my rescue... I can't stand to be alone right now! " Katara cried, sinking to her knees...


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4: Uncomfortable Fear

Prince Zuko watched from the tree he was in as he changed into his mask and disguise as he listened to the girl in distress...

' The poor girl... ' Prince Zuko thought worriedly, ' I had no idea something like that would scare her so badly... '

" You can stay here with us... " General Tonor said kindly.

" Yes... " Kiro said smiling reassuringly, " You are welcome to stay with us... I am sure that Prince Zuko... "

" Prince Zuko! You mean your his men?!" Katara exclaimed.

" Yes... " General Iroh said smiling, "Is that OK with you dear?"

Katara`s face lit up like that of an angel...

"Yes!" Katara said happily, " I need to speak to him!"

Prince Zuko sighed heavily up in the tree...

' Why does she want to see me?!' Zuko wondered as he took his disguise off again and carefully climbed down out if the tree...

Once on the ground, Prince Zuko carefully walked into camp casually and stopped in front of the girl...

"Um... What's going on?!" Prince Zuko asked.

Katara turned and saw Prince Zuko walking towards her and she could feel herself beginning to panic...

(Calm down... Calm down... ) Katara thought to herself as she felt her body begin to tremble...

( Aang is safe, I don't even know where he is right now, so he won't get to him... All I have to do is stay calm... I know we're supposed to be enemies, but he was kind to me once... Maybe he'll be nice to me again...)

" Your the one who usually travels with the avatar right?" Prince Zuko asked.

(I need to pretend not to know anything about what happened to her, or else she'll get suspicious...) Prince Zuko thought to himself...

"Yes... I usually do but I... I ran into some trouble a few days ago and got attached... The Blue Spirit saved me from a fire Nation Admiral... Then he disappeared and I can't find him..." Katara said worriedly.

"What about the avatar? Don't you want to go back to him?" Prince Zuko asked, " He's your friend... I'm sure they'll be worried about you..."

"Id like to... But... I'm scared..." Katara said nervously.

"I'm not going to try anything... If that's what your worried about..." Prince Zuko said coming closer...

"Huh?!" Katara gasped.

"You've been through something scary... I won't try to capture the Avatar, I'll leave you and your friends alone for a while... OK?" Prince Zuko said.

Prince Zuko moved back a little bit when he noticed that the girl had tears in her eyes...

"Prince Zuko...I... Can we talk?" Katara asked worriedly, " I know that we're supposed to be enemies... But I need someone to talk to..."

"Uh... Sure, we can talk in my tent..." Prince Zuko said softly.

Prince Zuko stood and extended his hand to her, Katara took it and they walked to a rather large tent in the middle of the camp... Katara gasped when he opened the flap and revealed the inside of his tent to her... The entire ground was covered in lush velvet and smooth silk pillows and blankets... There was a jewel encrusted tea pot and several beautiful gold colored porcelain cups, along with some spiced meats and different cheeses and pastries...

"Have a seat." Prince Zuko said as he sat down.

Katara blushed a bit and sat down in front of him... He looked at her expectantly and gulped and took a deep breath...

" Me and my friends were camping in a clearing in the canyon at least 40 miles from here... Suddenly, we were attacked by an Admiral and his army of soldiers... I told my friends to run, while I did what I could to keep them at bay... But the weird thing was that the Admiral didn't even try to follow them... By the time I realized what he was planning, he knocked me out... " Katara said shaking at the memory.

"Then what happened?" Prince Zuko asked calmly.

Prince Zuko could barely keep his temper in check... Just the thought of someone trying to hurt the girl in front of him was enough to have him seeing red...

" I asked what he wanted and he said he was looking for the avatar... I told him that I didn't know where he was and he hit me..." Katara said in tears, " He hit me over and over again... Then he laughed and said, ' You know what? I'm going to have some fun with you while I wait to get the avatar...' And then he tore my clothes off! I started screaming for help, when he began beating me and trying to force himself on me! Just when I thought he would end up taking what he wanted... The Blue Spirit saved me... I traveled with him for three days while I was unconscious, then when I woke up, he disappeared..."

"I can take you to your friends..." Prince Zuko said angrily, " You'll be safe with them..."

That's all it took for Katara to burst into tears... Prince Zuko was taken aback and quickly got to her side, gently laying a hand on her shoulder...

" What did I say wrong?! I thought you would want to be with your friends..." Prince Zuko said softly.

"I do..." Katara whispered, " But I don't think I'll feel safe with them any more... And if Admiral Zhou decided to come back and finish what he started with me and my friends try to stop him... They might end up hurt..."

"I'm so sorry... What is your name?" Prince Zuko asked softly.

"Katara." Katara whispered.

"Would you like to stay with me for right now? At least until you feel like going back to your friends?" Prince Zuko asked worriedly...

"You'd let me stay with you?!" Katara asked sniffling.

"Of course. Enemies or not, I don't want you getting hurt." Prince Zuko said softly.

Katara got up without another word and sat down next to Prince Zuko and laid her head on his shoulder.

"Thank you Prince Zuko.. " Katara whispered.

"Your welcome..." Prince Zuko said softly.

After a few minutes, Prince Zuko gently pulled Katara closer to him and she slipped into a deep peaceful sleep...


	5. Chapter 5

5: Problems

Prince Zuko had just picked up Katara and laid her on a mound of soft cushions when his uncle Iroh opened the door to his tent.

"Is everything OK with the young lady?" Iroh asked.

" She's resting... She's not ready to go back to her friends yet, so she's going to stay here with us for a while..." Prince Zuko said as he gently laid a silk sheet over her...

"What has happened to make her afraid to go back to her friends, I wonder?!" Uncle Iroh asked worriedly.

"Admiral Zhou attacked her group... " Prince Zuko said angrily, " She told them to run while she tried to stop him... But he wanted her all along... He captured her... Beat her... And nearly raped her! That's why I put on that disguise and posed as the Blue Spirit!"

"So... Your the Blue Spirit... " Iroh stated with his eyes closed.

"Yes uncle... I am... " Prince Zuko said proudly.

" And you saved that young lady's life... " Iroh said nodding.

"I couldn't just let him hurt her... I wouldn't be able to live with myself if I let that monster finish hurting her! Especially the way he wanted to!" Prince Zuko said angrily...

"I'm very proud of you my nephew... " Iroh said grinning.

" But uncle! I had no choice! I... What did you say, uncle?! " Prince Zuko asked, astonished...

"I am proud of you my nephew... By having a compassion in your heart and the will to protect the innocent, you are proving that you are in deed, worthy of the crown you will one day wear... " Iroh said proudly.

Prince Zuko bowed respectfully, to his uncle just as the other soldiers piled in... Tonor, Li, Vorec, and Tornock had apparently been eavesdropping and had heard everything...

" What are you guys doing?!" Prince Zuko whispered angrily, " Katara is asleep!"

" Calm down your majesty, we were worried about the young lady and wanted to know what was wrong... Is she alright?" Tornock asked.

"She's alright, but she's too scared to go back to her friends right now... She doesn't feel safe enough with them... " Prince Zuko said angrily...

" Was she hurt that bad?!" Li asked worriedly...

" She was severely beaten and nearly raped by Admiral Zhou... " Prince Zuko said angrily.

" That sick bastard!" Tornock exclaimed, " How dare he do this!"

" Wait, I thought she said the. Blue Spirit... " Tonor began in surprise, then suddenly became silent...

All at once, the men outside his tent dropped to they're knees in respect in front of they're Prince...

" We are truly honored To serve under you... Your highness... " Tornock said in respect...

" I'm honored to have the loyalty of such kind and good hearted soldiers as well... " Prince Zuko said bowing in turn to his crew...

A few hours later, the sun was setting when Katara finally awoke...

" Ah, " Li said peaking in to Prince Zuko's tent to check on her, " Your awake Ms. Katara... Prince Zuko asked me to escort you to dinner... "

Katara blushed and took the hand that the soldier offered her and he helped her to her feet...

" My name is Li. What's your name?" Li asked.

" Katara. " Katara said shyly, "Um... "

"Your wondering if your Blue Spirit had come back?" Li asked with a smile and a wink.

" Well... I Uh... I feel just as safe here as I did with the Blue Spirit... " Katara said blushing.

Li's grin grew even wider.

"Ah, well in that case, maybe we can keep you a while, it's very nice to meet a pretty new friend... " Li said happily.

He couldn't be much older then Aang... When they got to the fire in the middle of the camp, Katara was greeted rather warmly by all of Prince Zuko's men... All of them have her a warm smile and General Iroh beckoned for her to sit between Prince Zuko and himself...

"Good evening my dear, did you rest well?" General Iroh asked kindly.

" Yes... Thank you. " Katara said blushing.

"Prince Zuko had informed us of what happened to you, and we wish to let you know, that until you return to your friends, you will be under all of our protection... " General Iroh stated fiercely...

" You mean if she decides to go back to her friends! " Tornock said angrily, " I'm sure Prince Zuko would never force you to go back to your friends if you didn't wish to!"

" Tornock is right. " Tonor said smiling reassuringly, " Prince Zuko had already shown us how upset he is over what happened to you... None of us wish to see you harmed..."

"Prince Zuko?" Katara asked timidly.

" You have mine and my soldiers protection until you decide to go back to the avatar and your friends... I'll take you to them when you wish to see them again... " Prince Zuko said, " I give you my word as the crowned Prince of the fire nation... "

"Thank you... Prince Zuko... " Katara sighed nervously, surprising everyone by gently resting her head on Prince Zuko's shoulder...

Later that evening, introductions were given and Katara was happy to meet new friends... Despite the fact that they were fire benders, Katara found it quite comforting to be around them...

( What do I do?!) Katara thought to herself worriedly, (I don't really want to leave... I don't feel safe without Prince Zuko... And I don't know if I'll ever see the Blue Spirit again... What should I do?)

Three days later... Aang, Sokka, and Toph were searching frantically for Katara, expecting the worst...

" Where is she?! Where is she?!" Aang cried frantically, "What if she's hurt?! What if she's!"

"Don't even think that!" Sokka yelled frantically, "Katara is a smart girl... She probably drew away Prince Zuko's fire long enough for us to escape, then she created a diversion so she could escape herself and hide til they left! That's all! We'll find her!"

"I don't know you too... Anything could have happened to her by now... " Toph said worriedly, "She's not as tough as she acts... "

They flew until the sun began to set and decided to land and make camp in a lush forest down below... Sokka, being the self appointed leader of the group, decided to go and scout out the surrounding area for food, leaving Aang in charge of putting up they're tents... Aang put up his and Sokka's tents and Toph made her usual shelter out of rock... When Sokka came back, he had two large bags full of leachy nuts and three large bags of dragon berries...

" Oh wow!" Aang exclaimed happily, " Vegetarian heaven!"

"It sucks... No meat!" Toph said sourly...

"Yeah... I know... " Sokka sighed heavily, "My hunting skills aren't that great... Ok?!"

That being said, they all three are they're meatless meal in silence... Later that evening, after a few hours passed, Sokka and Aang noticed a glow deep in the forest and Sokka, with his keen meat smelling sense, smelled spiced meat cooking over a fire...

" I think a group of fire nation soldiers might be camped near by... We'll do a sneak attack and steal they're supplies right out from under them... " Sokka said, coming up with a plan...

" Sounds good to me!" Toph said enthusiastically, " I'm in serious need of some meat!"

After informing the others of his plan, Sokka quickly put his plan into action... Little did they know who's camp they were getting ready to invade...


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6: Troublesome Brother

At the camp, further in to the forest, Prince Zuko and his soldiers found themselves quite enjoying Katara`s company and learning about her unique heritage... Li and Tonor even surprised her with a large barrel of water from a nearby stream, so that she could practice her skills as a water bender... And with the silk gown she wore that Prince Zuko had secretly made her, she looked lovelier than any other woman alive... She had grown considerably since he'd battled with her... He and his soldiers watched in pure fascination as she spun and snaked the water around her body... Suddenly, Lieutenant Li came bursting into the camp and broke the magical spell that watching Katara water bend had cast...

" What is it?!" Prince Zuko whispered after he pulled his lieutenant aside.

" The avatar and his friends are headed this way!" Li said worriedly, " What if she doesn't wish to go with them?!"

" Then they will have to leave without her... " Prince Zuko said menacingly...

Katara was smiling shyly as she talked with Prince Zuko's uncle Iroh when Prince Zuko approached her and gently placed a hand on her shoulder...

"Prince Zuko, what is it?!" Katara asked in a sudden panic.

"Were you ready to return to your friends?" Prince Zuko asked.

" No...not yet... Why?" Katara asked worriedly.

"Your friends are close to the camp... They are coming here..." Prince Zuko said softly.

Katara quickly stood up and grabbed Zuko's hand...

"Please... You've got to hide me!" Katara whispered frantically, " I can't go back to them yet!"

Prince Zuko nodded and smiled at her reassuringly.

" Like I said, your under my protection as long as your here... You won't be forced to return to them if you don't wish to..."

Prince Zuko turned to go back out side when Katara suddenly threw her arms around him...

"Thank you Prince Zuko..." Katara said blushing.

Prince Zuko didn't say anything... He just embraced her gently in his arms for a few moments, causing her to blush a deep rosy pink...

(What I wouldn't give to keep you forever... I don't want you to ever go back...) Prince Zuko thought to himself as he held her tight...

Prince Zuko helped her then to lay down on the cushions and gently pulled a thin silk sheet over her to conceal her, then he went out to confront the trouble makers... When Prince Zuko got to the other soldiers, the avatar and his friends were already having a stand off against his soldiers...

"Zuko!" Aang said angrily, "What are you doing here?!"

"Well, this is my camp after all... I honestly should be asking you that... Avatar..." Prince Zuko said, faking anger...

"It is?!" Aang asked stepping back a bit...

"Yep." Prince Zuko said smirking.

"Uh... Oops! Sokka! Your plan was a bad idea!" Aang said nervously.

Aang instantly got into a fighting stance, causing Prince Zuko to smirk even wider...

"Hmm... Calm yourself, avatar..." Prince Zuko said with a hint of amusement, "I don't wish to fight you this time..."

"Huh?!" Aang asked dumbly...

The avatars expression was down right comical...

"What do you mean, you don't wish to fight Aang?! He's the avatar! You know, the kid your always trying to capture?! What's wrong with you?!" Sokka's said walking over to Prince Zuko and inspecting him, " Are you sick or something?!"

Some of Prince Zuko's men heard the water tribe boys remark and began snickering in the background...

" You could say that I suppose!" Tornock boomed laughing...

Prince Zuko turned and glared daggers at him, causing Tornock to raise his hands in defense, a goofy grin still plastered on the big guy's face...

"I'm not sick! Just had a long journey and do not feel like fighting right now is all!" Prince Zuko yelled irritated.

At this time, Li noticed Toph standing off to the side and went over to stand next to her...

(She's so cute...) Li thought to himself, ( Her eyes are such unusual pretty shade of green... Like light Jade... I wonder who she is?!)

" Um... Hi, how are you?" Li asked the girl nervously.

Toph jumped when she heard a man's voice right beside her...

"Uh... Fine? I guess?" Toph said a little bit surprised, " How about you?"

"I'm doing good... Where are you from?" Li asked.

"The earth kingdom. You?" Toph asked.

"Fire nation. What is your name?" Li asked, a little more confident.

"Toph Beifong. What's yours?" Toph asked.

"Very pretty, my name is Li..." Li said smiling.

"Li huh... That's nice..." Toph said blushing.

"So, Toph, what's it like traveling with the avatar?" Li asked.

(Hmm...) Toph thought to herself, ( He seems too nice to be fire Nation... And he seems so genuinely interested in me... Not my money or anything... Why? Why does he want to talk to me?!)

" It's interesting... We get to fly, although,i can't see very well unless my feet are on the ground..." Toph said smiling.

"What do you mean?" Li asked.

"I'm blind... But it's OK because I learned how to earth bend, so... I can actually see you... As long as I can feel the earth under my feet..." Toph said smiling.

It was the first time Toph had ever felt like a real lady... Even though she had men's clothes on... As of late, she'd been having to wear larger shirts because she was a Tom boy, and didn't wish for boys to notice her budding curves and bust... But she hadn't anticipated being noticed while wearing men's clothes, especially by a fire Nation soldier...

Feeling a bit bolder, Li stepped closer to her and surprised her by gently placing a kiss on her hand... Toph gasped at the contact and gently pulled her hand away, blushing brightly as she did so...

"What was that for?!" Toph squeaked...

"It's a tradition in the Fire Nation for a gentleman to kiss the hand of a beautiful lady..." Li said softly...

"Hey you two!" Tornock boomed laughing, "You two want some time alone?! Or you coming back to camp?!"

Li and Toph both blushed blood red before quickly rejoining the others... Apparently, they'd resolved the conflict and decided to talk...

"So..." Toph said casually, walking beside Sokka, " What exactly happened?"

"Prince Zuko is acting weird... One minute he wants the avatar and the next he's inviting us into camp to restock our supplies!" Sokka exclaimed, " It's like he got his hot headed personality stolen!"

"That's nice..." Toph said dreamily.

"It's not nice!" Sokka said aggravated, " It's creepy!"

Toph giggled, and walked back to where she could feel Li walking and caught up to him, a blush from his earlier words and actions still staining her cheeks...

Other then Aang thanking Prince Zuko for his kindness, Toph and Li were the only ones that talked until Sokka was satisfied with taking as much meat as he could, then he stomped over to Aang and began dragging him away...

"Come on Aang... Toph! Let's go!... We're done here..." Sokka said sourly...

" I guess... I uh... I'll see you around?" Li asked hopefully.

"Yeah..." Toph said blushing, " I mean... You are one of Prince Zuko's soldiers and I'm traveling with the avatar... So yeah... I'm sure we'll be seeing each other again soon..."

Li took Toph's hand and gently kissed it once more before saying a final farewell to her... He then went to his tent to keep the others from seeing just how much he did not wish for her to leave... But as Aang went to leave, Sokka bent down to pick something shiny up off the forest floor... What he did after that had everyone a bit worried... Sokka turned and glared at Prince Zuko with so much animosity and hatred that it make Prince Zuko take a step back... Then just like that he was gone... Aang and Toph quickly followed they're friend, wondering why he would act that way after what Prince Zuko did for them... They would get they're answer when they met up with him on the outskirts of the forest...

"OK Sokka we're away from Prince Zuko's camp... Now tell us what's gotten into you?!" Aang demanded angrily...

"You wanna know what's gotten into me?! I'll tell you! Prince Zuko didn't have a sudden change of heart towards us! He wanted to get rid of us because he's got Katara as his prisoner!" Sokka growled angrily...

"We can't prove that Sokka..." Toph said irritatedly...

"Oh yes we can! Look what I found!" Sokka said angrily, whipping out they're mother's necklace...

"Oh no!" Aang said worriedly, "What'll we do?!"

"What else! A rescue mission of course!" Sokka said angrily...

Meanwhile, back at camp, Prince Zuko gave Katara the all clear so she could come back out of hiding and resume eating her meal in peace...

The next day, however, that peace was unfortunately shattered...

Katara awoke once again, in an awkward position... She was curled up in prince Zuko's arms, much the way lovers would be sleeping next to each other and felt the heat rush to her face once she realized where Prince Zuko's hand was resting... Right on her breast...

"Um... Prince Zuko? " Katara whispered nudging him.

Prince Zuko groaned and tightened his hold on her...

"Prince Zuko! " Katara said more forcefully, "Your men will jump to conclusions if they see us like this! What will they think?!"

"That I'm a very lucky Prince... " Prince Zuko said hugging her...

Katara blushed even more and attempted to wiggle away from him... Only to end in disaster! Feeling her trying to get away from him, prince Zuko unconsciously grabbed her and rolled over on top of her, pinning her beneath him! Katara suddenly began seeing flashbacks of what admiral Zhou had done and tried to do to her, causing her to go into a panic attack... Before Katara could realize what was happening, a panicked ear piercing scream ripped it's way out of her... Then all hell broke loose... The wind whipped violently as the avatar burst through the camp, his terrifyingly powerful wind ripping up everything in its path! Prince Zuko had just woken up when Katara first screamed and was about to apologize to her for accidentally rolling over on her when the avatar grabbed him up and threw him into a tree across the campsite! Katara had finally realized that it was Prince Zuko, not admiral Zhou that was on her and quickly tried to call off the avatars attacks on Prince Zuko, but he refused to listen... Aang was trapped in the avatar state in a fixed state of vengeance...


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7: Secret Protector

Finally, after seeing so much destruction, Katara cried out as loudly as she could, thinking of the one and only thing she could say to call Aang back from the avatar state...

"Aang! Stop it! Your scaring me!" Katara cried frantically...

That was all it took for Aang to come back... But instead of rushing to his side like Aang usually remembered her doing after he came back from the avatar state, she rushed to Zuko's side instead...

"Zuko!" Katara said worriedly, "Are you alright?! "

"Yes... " Prince Zuko said standing... " Thank you..."

Katara blushed and looked away...

"Would someone please tell me what the hell is going on?!" Sokka yelled angrily, "Why are you protecting him Katara?! He's the enemy!"

"I know what you are thinking..." Iroh said casually walking over, "But your mistaken... Katara came running into our camp, scared and alone... Prince Zuko was concerned about her and even offered to take her back and help her find you guys... But she refused..."

"But... Why?!" Aang asked, the hurt and confusion evident on his face...

"I think I can answer that..." The big guy with long brown hair in a braid said angrily, "She was attacked..."

"What do you mean, attacked?!" Aang asked worriedly...

"My name is Tornock... Katara came running into our camp with tears running down her cheeks, and crying... Something had truly frightened her..." Tornock said gravely.

"I don't get it though..." Sokka said skeptically, "Katara was always much braver then the rest of us during battle... She's never been afraid of anything! Why would one little attack scare her so badly?!"

Quick as lighting, before even Tornock could think to do it himself, Prince Zuko shot across the clearing and grabbed Sokka by his throat,cutting off his air supply!

"Listen! You sorry excuse for an older brother!" Prince Zuko growled menacingly, "If you had stayed behind to protect your little sister instead of running to safety with the avatar, the blue spirit wouldn't have found her the way he did!"

"Wha?! What do you mean?!" Sokka gasped in shock...

"The Blue Spirit told me how he found her..." Prince Zuko said angrily...

"How did the Blue Spirit find her?!" Aang asked worriedly.

"No!" Katara cried out desperately, "Please... Prince Zuko?!"

"I'm sorry Katara... But your friends and your brother need to know..." Prince Zuko said softly, " The Blue Spirit told me that when he found her, she was naked, beaten, and bloody and the Fire Nation Admiral was about to rape her... That's when the Blue Spirit sprang into action and defeated him... He then took care of her for three days... But then, when she woke up, the Blue Spirit decided to go and find something for her to eat... That's when she became afraid to be alone and came running into my camp..."

Sokka grew silent, so Prince Zuko released him and waited until the information he'd given to them finally sank in... Suddenly, Sokka snapped his head over in Toph's direction and called her to attention...

"Toph... Please... Tell me he's lying..." Sokka said as his eyes grew hot with angry tears, "Please tell me my sister didn't really go through something that horrible..."

At that moment, Katara sank to her knees and began to cry...

"I'm sorry Sokka," Toph said, her voice breaking, " Prince Zuko is telling the truth..."

Prince Zuko ignored all the others and walked over to where Katara sat crying and gently placed his arms around her... When Zuko gently brushed her tears from her eyes, Katara laid her head on his should, her arms tentatively encircling his neck...

"Thank you so much... For everything... I feel so safe with you..." Katara sighed, "Even though we're supposed to be enemies... I feel safe around you, just as I did with the Blue Spirit..."

Suddenly, there was a huge roar and a fire ball slammed into the ground a few feet from the camp site! Prince Zuko was on his feet in an instant and shouting commands to his men!

"We're under attack!" Prince Zuko shouted angrily, " Get ready for battle!"

"Zuko! We can help! What do you want us to do?!" Aang asked worriedly.

"No! You and your friends need to get her out of here now!" Prince Zuko said angrily.

"But... " Aang began but Zuko cut him off...

"It's admiral Zhou and his men! Get Katara out of here now!" Prince Zuko commanded, " She is the one he's after! Leave! NOW!"

Just then, they heard a dark laugh and turned to face an evil looking man with a dark smile on his face...

"You need to leave my camp Zhou... Your not welcome here!" Prince Zuko said angrily, " Your not welcome here!"

"Tsk tsk tsk... You think I want the avatar... Is that it?" Admiral Zhou asked with an ugly smirk plastered on his face, "The truth is, I don't care at all about capturing the avatar... The one I want... Is the water tribe girl... Hand her over to me and I'll let you keep your avatar... "

"Avatar... When you see me attack him... Take Katara and your friends... And run... " Prince Zuko said angrily breathing out smoke...

Aang nodded and went to Katara, who was huddled by a tree in fear...

" Katara... Katara!" Aang shouted worriedly...

"Huh?!" Katara gasped trying to pull away...

"We have to leave Katara!" Aang said worriedly, "That man is after you!"

Aang called Sokka over when Katara refused to move and Sokka came over and quickly scooped her up into his arms... Once they caught Toph and called Appa, it was only a matter of seconds before the admiral turned his attention to them...

"Ah... " Admiral Zhou sighed, "There's my little rare flower... I've been looking for you... "

"Stay away from her!" Aang said bravely.

"Or what?!" admiral Zhou said laughing darkly, "You'll blow me away?! Please?!"

Suddenly, admiral Zhou did a series of quick jabs, leaving Aang limp and unconscious...

"Behold... The world's last hope for peace... Nothing but a pathetic weakling!" admiral Zhou sneered...

"Don't you dare touch her!" Sokka shout angrily, " Stay away from my sister!"

Sokka charged at admiral Zhou, attempting to hurt him and failing miserably... With just the wave of his hand, admiral Zhou summoned a fire blast, instantly engulfing Sokka in an inferno of flame... Sokka screamed in agony, luckily, prince Zuko was quick to use his own fire bending to put out the flames... Unfortunately, Sokka was still badly burned and prince Zuko ordered Li to take Katara and the others far away from the battle on the avatar's bison...

"Li... Take them and get them to safety... " Prince Zuko ordered, "I'll take care of Zhou..."

Katara cried as she watched the flames and cried for her brother who was severely injured because he chose to protect her... Li went over to her and gently picked her up... He then called the avatar's bison and gently laid Katara in the saddle, followed by the avatar and then he carefully carried her brother to the bison as well... Last but not least, he helped the beautiful blind earthbender named Toph into the saddle...

"Prince Zuko asked me to see to it that you and your friends get away from here safely... Is that OK with you?" Li asked respectfully.

"Yes! Of course! " Toph said in relief...

Katara, weak and terrified, worked up the courage to crawl over to Aang and Sokka and gently hugged both of them...

" I'm so sorry... " Katara said sadly, "It's all my fault... "

(Zuko... ) Katara thought to herself worriedly, (Please... Stay safe... )

Back at the camp, prince Zuko stood, ready to face admiral Zhou, wanting to keep the filthy animal away from Katara at all cost...

"You cost me my prey... Your highness... " admiral Zhou said with venom in his voice...

"You cost me mine first... " Prince Zuko said angrily.

Admiral Zhou laughed and walked away from prince Zuko...

"Wait! Where are you going?!" Prince Zuko asked angrily.

"Hunting..." admiral Zhou said laughing darkly...

And just like that, he was gone...


End file.
